Jakarta stocks fell on Friday amid concerns of possible campaign violence and organisational hiccups in the run up to parliamentary elections scheduled for April 5, analysts said.
The Jakarta Composite Index slid 1.78 percent to 714.13 points in relatively heavy trade of 840.93 billion rupiah ($97.65 million).
Losers outnumbered gainers 92 to 25 while 59 shares were unchanged.
"There are some concerns among investors about the general election schedule in some regions. They fear that it might not be met," said Fendi Susiyanto, an analyst at BNI Securities.
"But I think the market has overreacted to the issue," he added.
Local newspapers have reported possible delays to the polls due to logistical problems such as the distribution of ballot papers in some areas.
One analyst said some investors fear clashes between rival party supporters as the polls near. The index lost 3.87 percent of its value over the week, with many investors choosing to take to the sidelines. Some analysts said the index was likely to test psychological support at 700 points before rebounding.
Among the losers was big-cap PT Telekomunikasi Indonesia Tbk, which lost 2.94 percent of its value to 6,600 rupiah, partly due expectations of relatively poor financial results for 2003 due out soon.
Bucking the trend, consumer goods giant PT Unilever Indonesia Tbk managed to post a 0.72 percent gain on Friday after releasing sound results.
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